Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, when his Department last tested contingency arrangements for maintaining the distribution of medicines on the Critical Medicines List in the event of a major disruption to a) supply chains or b) transport networks.

The Department's contingency plans for maintaining the supply of medical products are under ongoing review by the Cabinet Office through their National Capabilities Assessment. This tests the Department's response to scenarios on the National Risk Register, including disruption to medical supply chains and transport networks.

The Department also takes part in exercises that test contingency arrangements. In November 2025, the Department participated in Exercise Pegasus, a tier 1 national-level exercise testing decision making processes for measures to contain, control, or mitigate the impact of a pandemic, including the impact on supply chains and transport.